


my happy place (is still haunted by you)

by Arenhai



Category: Final Space (Cartoon)
Genre: F/F, F/M, I took a break from writing Angst, M/M, To write some Angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-09
Updated: 2020-01-09
Packaged: 2021-02-27 05:07:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,196
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22181536
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arenhai/pseuds/Arenhai
Summary: “I should be good from here, Lil’ Cato can help set the table. Go get cleaned up.” He walked over and checked the stove, clicking his tongue in joy at what he saw.Gary nodded, and felt a stinging pain in his nose as blood dripped down. He ignored it.
Relationships: Quinn Airgone/Avocato/Gary Goodspeed
Comments: 23
Kudos: 58





	my happy place (is still haunted by you)

**Author's Note:**

> This could be read as (Almost) straight up fluff if you stop reading at the line  
> Before he could say a word, there was a knock at the front door.

Gary wiped the sweat from his brow with his human hand, flicking it away before he took the ax up again, placing a small log on the chopping block. Raising the old tool, he brought it down. In one chop the log splintered down the center, the two separate halves falling down on opposite sides of the block

“Dad!” Wiping his hands on his pants, Gary turned to be tackled by an adolescent ball of fluff. Hugging his son to his chest, he ruffled Lil’ Cato’s mohawk. Gravity making the blue hair flop unevenly to one side, hairs tickling the tips of his ears.

“Dad! Mom says you need to get too wood done so Pops can work on dinner, and after dinner can you teach me how to pick more locks? I’m getting really good and I-” The excited teen took a deep breath- “I really wanted to show Ash and Fox next time they visit!” 

Gary chuckled as he set his son down.

He opened his mouth to speak, but was distracted by a drip of crimson landing on his metal hand. He brought the hand up against his nose, only no more drops fell. He wiped the stain on the back of his pants.

“Of course! The wood is all done, help me carry it in and I’ll teach ya some more before dinner.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Gary sat cross-legged on the cabin’s floor, laying tools out on the ground and explaining their uses to his son. From the hallway, he could hear his husband making dinner, chopping and rinsing different vegetables as a roast cooked in the stove. Little Cato sat and listened, ears peaked attentively as he eagerly devoured the knowledge. Gleefully repeating back the information. At this point, Gary might as well buy a kit for him.

“Gary, I thought we decided that he wasn’t going to learn how to pick locks.” Quinn’s voice rang out from the doorway startling the two other occupants. She was wiping weapon oil off her hands with a stained rag.

Gary scratched the back of his neck in embarrassment, feeling a flush redden his skin. “Darling, love, light of my life and star of my left eye, you and Avocato get to teach him awesome fighting things! Let me teach him what I can?” His voice let out a slight whine at the end. He pouted his lips and gave his best puppy dog expression.

“Mom c’mon! I’m getting really good at it! Plus, like you and Pops always say, it's better to have it and not need it...” He trailed off, looking up expectantly.

“Then need it and not have it.” She huffed and walked into the room, ruffling his mohawk and studiously ignoring Gary’s look. “How did you get so smart huh?” The young teen batted away her hands and fixed his mohawk, sticking out his tongue in distaste. 

She turned to her husband, chuckling at the look he was giving her as she leaned over and kissed him lightly on the forehead. 

“I’m going to shower this muck off of me before dinner. Gary, after this lesson you should go help Avocato in the kitchen. We’re having guests and he wanted to go overboard.”

Gary smiled and nodded, before feeling a wetness on his upper lip. Moving his hand over it, he wiped away more crimson. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Avocato was humming when Gary walked into the kitchen, some old ventrexian lullaby he had sung non-stop when Little Cato was a fussy kit who wouldn’t stop screaming. Gary started humming along as he wrapped his arms around his husband’s waist. Swaying gently with the song. Avocato chuckled warmly and turned his head, rubbing his nose against Gary’s before moving away to dump a large amount of vegetables into a pot of simmering liquid.

“Something smells delicious.” Gary over exaggeratedly sniffed the air, letting out a small sneeze as the spices tingled his nose. He walked over to the sink and washed his hands under the warm water, rubbing lemon-scented soap and wincing as it stung at small cuts on his flesh hand.

“It better smell delicious, I spent long enough on it.” Avocato stires in a glob of a yellowish mud-like substance, turning the clear water into a soupy cream color. “Can you hand me the rosemary?” He held out one of his furred hands, making a grabbing motion as he stirred with the other.

“Which cupboard is it in?” 

“The one above the sink, left side.” Gary took a large step towards the cupboard, opening up the wooden door and rummaging for the herb. He finally pulled out the glass bottle, several dried sprigs of the herb sitting within. He handed it to his husband with fanfare, bowing at the waist.

“The requested magical plant, my liege.” Avocato let out another deep chuckle, not even looking at the human as he crushed the plants in his hands, sprinkling them down into the stew.

“A thousand thank yous, my loyal knight.” He wiped his hands off on the apron, before pressing a quick peck to Gary’s cheek. “I should be good from here, Lil’ Cato can help set the table. Go get cleaned up.” He walked over and checked the stove, clicking his tongue in joy at what he saw.

Gary nodded, and felt a stinging pain in his nose as blood dripped down. He ignored it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Gary ruffled his head with the towel, looking at himself in the mirror. He tossed the towel to the bed as he walked closer. Pinching at his cheeks, moving his eyes as the mirror, mirrored his actions. Something just felt off. The mirror reflected him perfectly, but something just wasn’t right. 

Something was missing… But what in the world could it be? 

A drop of crimson fell down.

“Gary! Guests are here!” Quinn’s voice called out from downstairs, pulling him out of his thoughts. He quickly finished getting dressed, pulling on a red plaid button-down and his favorite jeans.

Walking down the stairs, he looked at the photos framed on the wall. Quinn after she graduated from the academy, a blue cap and gown dressing her as she held up a diploma in joy. Avocato in his military suit, medals pinned down the right side as he stared at the camera, a stern but happy face. Little Cato when they first brought him home, swaddled in layers after layers of blankets, his small pink nose peeking out from beneath.

Their wedding day, Quinn in a beautiful white gown, him in a gray tux, and Avocato in a black suit. They were all holding hands and beaming, the sunset casting an ethereal light on them.

He was pulled out of his reminiscing as a voice called out from the front room.

“Kiddo!” His father swooped in pulling him into a spine shattering hug before setting him down. His mother was close behind, giving him a punch in the shoulder before ruffling his hair. 

“Dad! Mom! It’s so good to see you guys!” He pulled them both back into a hug, his mother only stiffening for a moment in the embrace, before settling into it. 

“Of course ya drango, we wouldn't want to miss out on your man's cookin'.” She said with a sharp grin. Instinctively blocking the elbow nudge John gave her.

"She's saying that because neither of us wanted to cook." He said in a conspiratorial whisper. Before she could respond (probably with loving violence) the door opened again.

“Gary, it is good to see you again.” H.U.E waddled in, old mechanical body creaking with every step. He reached his stumpy arms up and gave his friend a tight hug. Gary only had time to set his A.I friend down before he was tackled by a behemoth and a flying demon.  Fox picking him up around his knees, lifting him into the air while Ash wrapped around his neck.

“Uncle Gary!” The siblings screamed as they hugged him. He chuckled as he wrapped around the two of them the best he could, one arm around Fox’s head while the other went around Ash’s waist, gently prying the enthusiastic girl away from his throat.

“Kids! It’s great to see you! Little Cato should be setting the table.” The two children nodded once before racing each other to the hallway. The adults of the room laughing at Fox's shout of “No fair! Flyin’s cheatin’!”.

“H.U.E, no A.V.A today?” John asked with a raised eyebrow. H.U.E shook his head.

“She is meeting with Clarence. The rat is trying to gain visiting rights. She is letting him know that that would be a very fatal decision.” Everyone nodded solemnly at that, Clarence was the lowest of the low, and suddenly wanting to see the children could only mean that he was scheming something.

“She took K.V.N with her," H.U.E continued. "She believes that he would be a welcome companion for the negotiations. Ha. Ha. Ha.” Everyone chuckled at the idea of K.V.N being 'civil' to the man that had hurt his “Fleshy offspring”.

Several drops of crimson fell from his nose, but Gary shook his head, smiling as he gestured towards the hallway. “Shall we eat?”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The dinner table was filled with laughter and noise, voices chatting as they ate the stew that Avocato had made. Shredded beef roast, soaked in the vegetable stew filled their stomachs. Gary looked from the head of the table, Avocato and Quinn by his sides digging into the meal. Fox and Lil' Cato deciding to have an eating contest while Ash cheered them on. H.U.E and Sheryl discussed different ways to handle Clarence if he became more of an issue. John took a sip of his wine before clearing his throat, standing up and tapping his spoon against the side.

Everyone quieted down as the patriarch stood, smiling as he opened his mouth to speak. But before he could say a word, there was a knock at the front door.

“I’ll get it.” Lil’ Cato hopped to his feet, running towards the door. Gary stood as well, walking towards it calling out to his son.

“Little Cato what have I told you about…” His words cut off as he exited the hallway, staring at the shape in the doorway.

“Ahhh Gary! It’s so good to see you!” The shape walked through the door, a scruffy tired-looking man with a deranged smile greeted him. Holding his son in a clawed grip by the shoulder.

“Little Cato. Go get your father.” Gary said calmly, walking forward slowly towards the stranger, who tightened the grip on his son until he let out a mewl of pain.

“Oh, but we can’t let him go yet, Gary! He should be here to see this!” The green eyes widened and slimed at different intervals, but they never moved off of him.

“Dad?” Searing pain filled his nose as blood rushed down. The taste of iron-rich in his mouth as he looked at his son. 

Scared, tear-filled eyes stared back as Little Cato tugged fruitlessly at the hand wrapped around his shoulder.

“Let go of him, I’ll do whatever you want if you just don't hurt him.” Gary’s voice was filled with steel, unbending and unshaken even as terror flooded his heart. He wanted to tear the man away from his son, but was worried that any rushed action might make the mysterious man react and hurt him.

“He’s such a precious little boy, I think my son and him would have gotten along marvelously! I’m sure of it!” The man let out a loud cackle that hurt Gary's ears.

“If you hadn’t gotten him killed.” The pain was almost blinding now, red rivers gushing from his nose as his stomach boiled. He fell to his knees, catching himself with shaky hands as the man threw his son away from them. 

“You got him and his mother killed. You got the entire planet destroyed! So you know what I’m going to do Gary Goodspeed? I’m going to take away everything you love, piece by piece, until there is nothing left! No one left to remember you by! By the time I’m done you will be begging for death, and I’ll say no. I’ll restart the simulation and destroy you all over again. I’ll keep repeating this until there isn’t a fragment in your mind that hasn’t been shattered! YOU WILL SUFFER!” The walls melted away at the man’s scream, his family was lined up in the darkness, chained by an invisible force. They all stood stalk still, eyes blank and looking forward into nothingness.

“Please, I don’t even know you! I didn’t know your family! Why are you doing this?” Gary collapsed lower to the ground as more blood flowed out his nose. He shut his eyes against the pain, only opening them when a boot landed by his nose.

“My name is Todd. I know you don’t understand this, I created this world just for you Gary! Since you destroyed the last one!” The boot came crashing down, flattening his nose. “I erased your memories and crafted the perfect world! Just so you could feel every confusing moment of agony!” Todd let out another insane laugh, holding his sides as if he had heard hilarious news.

“I've invented a lovely game for us to play Gary!" A gun materialized in Gary’s hand.

"Here’s the rules Gary! You choose which one dies first, and then you pull the trigger!”

Before anyone could blink five shots fired in quick succession, beams of light that should have punched through Todd’s body passing by him harmlessly as an intense electric shock racked Gary’s body.

“You didn't let me finish! If you try to break the rules…” Another, stronger shock passed through him, making him grit his teeth trying not to scream. “I’ll tase you. Fun fact Gary! The human body can withstand amazing amounts of pain before it passes out, but electricity is a great stimulant!” A third shock hit his body, he felt his limbs lock up and let out a pained howl. The electricity continued until he ran out of air, his lungs not being able to fill with oxygen while his body was locked down. He felt his vision blacking out, until suddenly the shock cut off, and blessed air filled his lungs again. He curled on the ground, cradling his head to his knees, trying his best to block out the nightmare around him.

“Oh no, Gary! We can’t have you wait too long!” Todd’s maniacal voice echoed in the void. "Get up and choose! Make a choice now! Tick tock TICK TOCK!"

“Choose, or I’ll kill them all.” Gary let out a sob, as he slowly got to his feet, feeling woozy from the shocks, and the blood loss. He stumbled for a moment, before finding stability again. He pulled the gun up, and made his choice.

A blast passed through Todd again, while Gary’s tortured screams and the smell of burning hair filled the air.

“Really? You would try that again?” Gary pulled against his spasming muscles, leveling another shot at Todd. The blast when wide, and the shock intensified. 

“Wowie! You really are stubborn!” A third shot, this time the gun was aiming at the ground. Gary’s vision was white, even as his eyes were wide open. The spit in his mouth crackled and spat sparks as the lightning bounced around his body. Time slowed to a crawl while it happened. He couldn’t move, or think, or even breathe as his body seized.

The smell of charred blood wafted up from his head. Ears, eyes, nose, and mouth all spraying out crimson lifeblood.

“Enough!” The shock cut off mercifully, even as his body continued to spasm from the after-effects of such high voltage.

“Why haven’t you chose one yet? Do you really want me to kill all of them?”

Gary dazedly looked up at Todd’s confused visage, before letting out a small agonized laugh, throat torn from repeated screams.

“You ... said….. It ...was…. A ...sim.” Gary managed to choke out the words between tortured breaths. Todd stilled, before letting out a cackle of laughter.

“Out of everything, you managed to pay attention to that! THAT’S WHAT TIPPED YOU OFF!” A foot came crashing down on his chest, pushing all the air out and shattering rips. 

“YOU!” Stomp

“WORTHLESS” Stomp

“IDIOT” Stomp

The world melted away from Gary’s eyes, the void bleeding away as Todd raged above him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Gary looked at the cloudy glass above him, several shadows were dancing around it. He looked around groggily, feeling like he had practiced sparring with his mom again. Looking around him, he was on a bed of cushy pillows. He poked one and laughed when his finger slowly dug into it. Memory foam. But Mooncake was squishier. 

_ Mooncake… _

Why did it feel like he hadn’t seen Mooncake in so long? He looked up at the shadows still moving on the cloudy glass. Pressing a hand against it made them still, one of the shadows lifting a limb and placing it to the other side.

His arm felt so heavy…

He let it fall to his side, and felt his eyes widen and the red smudge left on the glass above. 

_ Huh. That’s… probably a bad thing… _

He tried to sit up, and felt his entire body shudder before relaxing back into the pillows. Getting up would be such an effort, maybe he could just sleep for a while longer....

There was a sudden blast of noise as the glass above him shattered, tiny shards tinkling down on his face like falling stars.

_ Pretty… _

“C’mon Thunder Bandit! Snap out of it!” When did Lil’ Cato get here? Why was his son shaking him..?

“Guys he’s completely out of it, whatever that freak gave him it's not out of his system yet. He looks pretty messed up too, we need the medical area ready A.V.A!” Why was he so loud? Were there fireworks going off? Rapid-fire fireworks?

_ Hahaha, fire fireworks…  _

He felt a slight burning sensation cover his skin, making him groan in discomfort. It felt like a sunburn, like Ash’s magic. A pink light show covered his skin as  _ something  _ pulled him away from his pillows and into the air. Holding him in a protective bubble as he moved. 

_ Maybe it is Ash… _

“I got him! I got him! Let’s  **GO ALREADY”**

_ Yeah, that’s Ashy haha… _

The fireworks continued as he floated through the air, a cacophony of noise that hurt his head, but also sounded like music. A soothing lullaby to go to sleep to…

He glanced around as he dozed, seeing weird things, Avocato and Fox playing a laser light show. Little Cato screaming as he hurled disco balls at fluffy looking aliens. Quinn jogging ahead of everyone, dancing around a really shiny stick and leaving the fluffy things scattered on the ground. Once he even felt like he was falling for a moment while Ash sang, before the sun burning feeling came back.

“Mooncake. Tear this ship from space”  
“ **Chookity Pop”**

_ The finale! _


End file.
